Forever It Shall Remain Untitled
by Sasuke-KiraLover
Summary: He just couldn't take it anymore. So what did he do? He ran. He ran and he didn't look back. What he didn't notice until it was far to late? He ran straight into her arms. / Rated T for now.
1. Running

**Forever It Shall Remain Untitled.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

* * *

><p>Usually, the sun rays were the wake-up call for a certain male teenager, but this night it was the desperate emptiness of his stomach that pried him from his slumber. His eyes fluttered open, long lashes framing the dark irises, and there in itself was a sight to behold. The tone of his usually spiteful, brooding onyx eyes was different, soft and tired and world-warn.<p>

Those very eyes drifted over the scene before him, glancing to the window in time to see the last shades of the sunset begging to stay. They faded eventually to blackness, just like every other night.

He blinked. A low groaning sound came from his abdomen and he suddenly remembered he was hungry. He lazily sighed and sat up in his soft, warm, dark bed and let the blood flow properly through his being before standing and making the short journey down the stairs, into the lit up kitchen.

His mother, Mikoto Uchiha, was at the stove, depositing a pan full of her special chocolate chip cookie dough into the oven to bake. She straightened up and turned her head towards her son. "Sasuke-kun, you're awake!" she exclaimed with glee, rushing towards him with her arms open, seeking a hug. He tensed up, but didn't evade the physical contact.

"Yeah." He said shortly, gently squeezing his mothers small frame. She tightened her grasp once then let go and held his shoulders as she looked up at her little boy. Well, he certainly wasn't little anymore, she inwardly admitted, already eighteen and so tall.

"I was afraid you'd never come out of that room! You've been cooped up all day." She said, grabbing his chin and forcibly examining his face, "You look like you've just woken up. You haven't been wasting your day sleeping again, have you?" She inquired worriedly.

"I didn't get much sleep last night." He muttered, pushing her hand away and sighing.

"Sasuke Uchiha!" She hollered, hands immediately placing themselves sternly on her hips, "You know I don't like you staying up all night! What's your excuse this time, huh?"

The boy in question shrugged and strolled to the refrigerator, "I was working on the business again." He muttered while examining the foods, then made a grab for the small carton of cherry tomatoes he so enjoyed.

"That's _always _your excuse!" His mother frowned, strutting forward and grabbing hold of the tomatoes before he could pop any into his awaiting mouth. He frowned.

"Because I'm _always _working." He ground out, making a grab for the tomatoes. She bumped him away with her hip and grinned while rinsing the tomatoes in the sink.

"I worry about you, Honey. Don't work to hard. No matter what your father says, you're doing just fine." She reassured her troubled boy and handed him a few rinsed tomatoes which he grabbed and ate quickly.

"That's all I'm doing though," He sighed dejectedly, "I'm doing _just fine_. I'm not doing great, or even good. Just fine. That's it." He said as he reached for another tomato.

His mother gave him a small smile, "and that's better than most! Your father's proud of you, I know it." She clucked, putting the rest of the tomatoes back in the refrigerator.

Sasuke lifted himself onto the counter and gave her a small smile. "If only." He said, letting his guard down as he tended to do around his mother. He knew she wouldn't knock him down like his father.

"He is! Now lick this spoon." She ordered, shoving a dough covered spoon under his nose. He wasn't really a big eater, so he could have been satisfied with the few tomatoes he ate, but he never could resist his mother's chocolate chip cookies, let alone the dough.

He licked the dough silently, watching his mother as she flitted around the room, cleaning up whatever was dirty or out of place and he suddenly wondered how she survived here. With her husband a cruel, seemingly heartless man and an apathetic, quiet son. It was no secret that her and his father had had an arranged marriage when they were twenty three. It was a big part of the Uchiha files, after all.

She was just so full of energy, and happiness, and she was just so good. She was a good wife, and an even better mother. Would she be an even better grandmother? Sasuke paused. She might not ever get grandchildren. Sasuke was currently not interested in any type of woman, they were just a hindrance to his work now and he didn't know if that would ever change. And as for his brother…well he didn't know. He hadn't seen said brother in almost six years.

Mikoto came and snatched the spoon from his hands and quickly washed it off. As she was putting it back where it originally started they both heard the front door open and slam closed.

Fugaku Uchiha.

The heavy sound of his boots hitting the hardwood floor seemed to echo around them as he stomped into the kitchen, looking as stuck up as always.

"Get me a beer, B*tch." He ordered Mikoto grumpily, taking a seat at the table. Sasuke's fist clenched with the sudden urge to remove his father's face. He suppressed the feeling entirely with practiced ease. It wasn't the first time he'd addressed Mikoto in such a manner. She obediently fetched him a can of his favorite beer.

"Sasuke." His father looked over at him as he took a swig of the foul drink.

"Yes, Fugaku?" Sasuke responded, his voice betraying none of his upset. He'd practiced this many times. He found he gained more of the respect he so craved from this man when he was cold.

"I got a call today," He started off, fixing Sasuke with a disapproving glare, "apparently, the squad you sent out yesterday evening was shot down and killed."

Sasuke winced inwardly. That was the reason he had been up all night, trying to somehow work the problems in the system and see what exactly went wrong. Unfortunately, he had underestimated the number of guards protecting their target. He had messed up.

"I know." Sasuke replied shortly, staring his father in the eye, like he was taught.

"You messed up again, boy." He sneered, taking another swig of his drink. "You know what? I'm sick of you. I never did like you that much. Itachi was always better. Itachi did what he was told, when he was told, how he was told. He never made a mistake. Not a single one. But you? You stay cooped up in your room, drowning with your boo-hoo-me emo self pity. You don't do anything for my company, and worst of all you don't listen and you don't try." Fugaku ranted, while Sasuke held his tongue, glaring at the wall behind his father's head.

"Fugaku, dear, you know he tries. He stays up all night and-" Mikoto tried to defend her son, but Fugaku interrupted.

"It doesn't matter if he was awake working non-stop for the rest of his life, nothing would change. He's useless and a waste of space. He can't do anything right." His father spouted more of his degrading words straight to Sasuke's ears and mind.

His rage was building and the need to rebel and deny every false accusation was bubbling over his limit.

"Fugaku! You know he is not! He is your son and he is fairing just fine!" Mikoto glared harshly at her husband, warning him not to take this scene any further than it had already gone.

Fugaku, being the stubborn man he was, stood from his seat and slapped Mikoto straight across the face in the blink of an eye.

Sasuke saw red. He couldn't control his mouth as he screamed out every possible thing he could remember. Every word coming from the boys mouth held truth, and raw feeling. Anger unimaginable, but Fugaku just glared and shouted right back. Eventually Fugaku advanced on Sasuke, shoving him into a wall and holding him by his throat.

"You are not my son. You are a failure and a worthless piece of garbage." He spat, sneering down at him menacingly.

Ignoring all previous thoughts of pleasing his father, Sasuke gathered his clenched fist and punched his father right in the jaw. His dad stumbled back and grabbed his jaw, swearing heartily and returning Sasuke's favor by punching him back.

"Stop it!" He heard a shrill scream, and he suddenly remembered his mother was in the room. Sasuke and Fugaku both looked over at the distraught woman, who was in tears. "Stop it! Both of you!"

Sasuke looked lost. He then looked back at his father, the hate and just plain disgust in his eyes. He couldn't take it. Sasuke left the room, into the living room and slipped on his shoes, grabbed his favorite leather jacket and ran out the door.

He ran for what seemed like hours, but in reality was only about ten minutes. He finally stopped on a dark corner, the warm late spring air danced around him as he glanced around frantically. He didn't know where exactly he was, but he recalled driving by once or twice.

He pulled out his phone and tried to decide on who he could call. He immediately dialed his best friend's number. It rang three times before a tired voice answered, "What, Sasuke? I call all day and nothing, but once I try to sleep it's suddenly 'call Naruto' time, eh?" The blonde accused, already yelling.

"I ran away." Sasuke stated the three words as if they were dangerous, which they probably were. Naruto was silent for a few seconds.

"Really?" Naruto asked, completely shocked but at the same time he knew it was coming sometime. Sasuke had told him about his father's cruel ways years ago.

"Well, it's not legally running away since I'm eighteen. But I literally just ran out of my house and I don't think I'm going back." He explained, looking around as a few cars drove past.

"Ugh. Dude, Sasuke. I would say come over but I'm all packed up and leaving early tomorrow." Naruto sighed. That's right, Sasuke thought, Naruto was going on an all-summer vacation to some distant country with his grandfather, the pervert author.

"Oh right, I forgot. Well, I could always call someone else…" Sasuke trailed off. He thought for a moment, then realized he had no other close friends he could call. He wasn't really a people person and all his high school acquaintances had moved on.

"Alright man, be careful and don't fall for the candy in the van. Or the puppies." Naruto warned seriously, even though Sasuke knew he was kidding.

"I'll try not to. But you know how much I love those puppies." Sasuke sighed, inwardly laughing.

"Stay fresh, dude. Later." Naruto hung up and Sasuke snapped his phone shut.

As he watched the cars drive by, he wondered where he was going to go. He had no plans for the summer, and there was no way he was going home, not now. So Sasuke did something that Uchiha's never did. He stepped to the edge of the road and lifted his thumb at the passing cars. Most just kept on driving not caring at all that he wanted to get out of this cursed town.

He wasn't paying attention when a small little black car stopped in front of him and was surprised when the driver honked once to get his attention.

The passenger window rolled down and a woman came into view. She grinned up at him, her eyes some odd color he couldn't figure out in the dark, and her hair seemed to be glowing, so he guessed it to be some light color. "Headed somewhere?" She asked.

He nodded once and ran his fingers through his hair as the cool breeze blew through it. She rolled her eyes playfully and laughed, "Well then get in!"

He complied, and slid into the dark seat which was rather soft, he admitted. He felt a gaze on his face and turned to face the only possible person.

"So. Where to?" She asked excitedly, as if her happiness counted on his decision. He shrugged.

"Anywhere but here." He muttered, running a hand through his hair again and letting out a tired sigh.

"Really? I'm headed that way myself! Want to come with?" She raised a brow, starting the engine again.

"Why not?" He half smirked, "So where exactly are you going?" His dark eyes watched the road ahead as she expertly drove through the slow traffic.

"Well, as you asked, anywhere but here. But if you really want to indulge in specifics, I'm headed to my cabin up north. About a two day drive from here, including stops and such." She informed without taking her concentrated eyes from the road.

"And you plan to drop me off where?" He asked, shifting his hold on the jacket in his hands. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. She was smiling.

"Well I didn't plan to, but if you want I can drop you off somewhere." She suggested. He examined her. She had a lip ring and two piercings in her earlobe. Her hair was twisted into a bun atop her head, but he could see it was long. He couldn't decipher the color of her hair, but he thought he saw the tone of her eyes in the light of a streetlamp. Green.

"Well…I've never been camping before…" Sasuke trailed off, having nowhere to go and he didn't really want to be dumped in some random city. So he digressed.

"Oh! Really? Well, I guess that's about to change, huh? Oh, by the way, my name's Sakura." She threw him a quick smile but seemed determined not to take her eyes from the road. He commended her driving.

"Sasuke." He replied, staring out the window at the passing city and all it's bright lights. The buildings just kept on flying by.

"Sasuke? That's a nice name. So…care to explain why you're hitchhiking?" She giggled, making a slow left turn at a stop light.

"I don't believe it's any of your business." He stated rudely, his sudden spite made her look at him with wide eyes for a moment. She instantly scowled.

"Your in _my _car, going to _my _cabin, and you're probably going to be using _my _food and clothing, so I do believe I get some sort of explanation as to _why _I'm driving you." Sakura retorted, nearly matching his tone which surprised him a bit. He didn't show it as he glared harshly at her.

"It was you who decided to be the heroine and save me from getting picked up by a crazed lunatic. So I owe you nothing, you did this on your own." He concluded.

"How do you know I'm not a crazed lunatic?" She gave him a wicked grin. He rolled his eyes.

"I don't." he admitted, watching her. She raised her brows and grinned again.

"Exactly. Don't push my buttons or I might whip out a chainsaw on you." She joked. It was amazing, Sasuke thought, how she could just completely change a mood from slightly awkward to hostile to joking. It was like she controlled emotions and bent them at her own will. He wasn't to sure that he liked being controlled.

"I'm still not going to tell you." Sasuke informed his companion. She shrugged.

"You will. In time, love, in time." Sakura said ominously. Suddenly Sasuke was blinded by a bright light that faded slower than he would've liked. He looked out his window to see the bright neon sign of a hotel.

"You're stopping?" He asked incredulously.

"Well, yeah. I can't drive all day _and _all night, can I?" She countered with the same amount of petulance.

Oh. She'd been driving all day too. He hadn't thought of that.

"I suppose not." Sasuke said as she pulled into a parking spot and stopped the car. She looked over at him with a half smile.

"You only have what's on you, right?" Sakura suddenly demanded, her tone leaking excitement.

"Obviously." He dead-panned. He wasn't sure what she was up to, but he had a feeling he wouldn't enjoy it as much as she would.

"Glorious!" She uttered, swinging her door open and hopping out. He raised a brow and swung his open too, although he chose to calmly step out of the vehicle instead of acting a fool.

As he looked around, he realized he was far away from home already. Maybe a good hour drive. He didn't realize they had gone that far already. The tall white castle-looking building towered over them. Sakura then appeared in front of him, not blocking any of his vision because of her extremely short stature. He suppressed a chuckle. He still couldn't tell the color of her hair in the faulty neon lighting, but her eyes were definitely green.

He didn't know why he was getting along so well with her. He usually never made a connection with anyone. He simply wasn't a people person. Maybe it was the way she looked at him. It was obvious she found him attractive, no one could deny his handsome features, but she didn't ogle him like all those girls in high school. She stared him down with her intelligent green eyes. It was like a challenge, not an invitation to hop in bed, but a dare. A dare that said, "why don't you just come on and try then?"

She had a lot of emotions in her eyes. He could tell she wasn't just going on vacation, but it was also some sort of get-away-from-life trip.

"One room, please." Sakura said as she handed over the required amount of money. The cashier took the money and handed over a key.

Sasuke wondered why exactly she didn't get two rooms, but figured it out in his mind that she probably only brought enough money for herself and not another person.

Once in the room, Sakura was relieved to find there was a couch against the wall that Sasuke could sleep on. Sakura didn't think she would get much sleep if she was in the same bed as _him_.

She had to admit, that boy was beautiful. His strong jaw and thin, pale skin was flawless, smoothly shaven and all. He had a tall, lanky build to him. He seemed more of a broody bad boy with his leather jacket and dark clothes, but he proved to be a very smart person. She could tell by the way he held himself, as if he was better than normal people.

She put her overnight suitcase down by the bed and looked back at Sasuke who was strutting towards the small linen closet near the bathroom. He pulled out a clean white sheet and draped it over the couch. There was hardly any space between the couch and the bed, maybe two feet. A small bedside table was in-between the white couch and the bed.

An awkward silence overtook them as Sasuke sat down and looked at Sakura as she slowly lowered herself onto the bed. They stared at each other.

"So…" Sakura trailed off, not comfortable in the silence. She was exhausted but she didn't want to just go to sleep with him in the room. She hardly knew him.

"I'm going to bed." He stated, rolling over and letting his head hit the cushion. He wasn't really going to sleep, he wasn't tired. He had slept all day after all. But nonetheless, he saw she was tired, and decided to at least fake for her sake.

Sakura was grateful as she climbed into her sheets and muttered a small, "goodnight," which was left unanswered. Her eyes closed.

Sasuke had a strange feeling in his gut, but he blamed it on whiplash. His life had taken an unanticipated turn, and he didn't know if it was for better or for worse yet. He sighed almost silently.

She has pink hair, Sasuke thought as he laid there, _pink _hair. He sighed again. Now he understood the name.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So, new story? Yes. I got this idea very suddenly and I fell in love with it. I've always wanted to run away. It's not that I hate my home, not at all. I'm a weird person. I want to expirience things. So I wanted to know how it felt to run away. I was watching a video by The Used. It was "The Taste Of Ink." When I saw the blonde guy trying to hitchhike I got the idea, and I called my friend to tell her about it. She urged me to write it because she loved it. So, I'm hoping you guys like it too? **

**I'm not very pleased with the ending, it seems a little rushed and dull to me. But it's what I have. Enjoy! **

**Read and Review, please! The next chapter will be out soon! **


	2. A First

**Forever It Shall Remain Untitled.**

**Diclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

* * *

><p>It was dark.<p>

Not the kind of dark where you can still see the outline of objects, but a pitch black so dark he couldn't see his own hand in front of his face. It was like a heavy, hot blanket had been thrown over him and he couldn't remove it.

He then realized he couldn't move, he was glued to his spot, standing with his arms firmly by his sides. Suddenly an odd noise filled the space, echoing around. To Sasuke it sounded like a demonic laugh.

Moments later, a tall man was visible, clear as day, the only thing Sasuke could see, "Sasuke, how are you? It's been to long." He said.

"I-Itachi." Sasuke stuttered slightly, he blamed shock and the difficulty to speak in the heavy area, "where am I? What're you doing here?" He demanded, trying to get his muscles to work, to move, to kill this man.

"Tsk, tsk. Sasuke, I thought after a few years you wouldn't be so foolish as to try to attack me the first chance you got. I guess I thought wrong." Itachi sighed dramatically as if this were all very troubling to him. His crimson eyes looked into Sasuke's.

"Shut up and answer my question!" Sasuke shouted angrily, straining more on the invisible weights.

"Fine, fine. Calm down little brother I'm only teasing. You are where you wish to be, and I am who you wish to see. Does that answer your question?" Itachi raised a fine brow.

"No. I don't want to be here and I don't want to see you, so how exactly-" Sasuke was interrupted.

"Sorry Sasu-chan, but it seems your body wishes to wake up now. Until next time, foolish little brother." He said as he tapped Sasuke on the forehead.

* * *

><p>He jumped awake, flailing when he realized he was falling off of the couch he was resting on. He thumped onto the floor. A low groan escaped his mouth.<p>

He lay there, facedown on the tacky carpet of a hotel room, trying to regain his composure. Finally, he let out a long breath and crawled back onto the couch he had claimed.

He stared at the ceiling for a few moments, then wondered when exactly he had fallen asleep. He didn't remember feeling drowsy in the slightest, and here he was waking up from- what did he wake up from again?

Sasuke blinked. He was just thinking about it. He couldn't remember his dream. He sighed again. He was never much of a morning person.

He didn't know how long he lied there, just trying to remember his dream.

A small noise from the bed interrupted his brooding. His head whipped over to see Sakura struggling with the sheets and whining as if she were being attacked. He shot up from the couch to examine her. Her face was wet with tears and sweat. His eyes widened as he reached out to shake her awake, but just before his hand touched her shoulder, she stilled. Her eyes slowly opened and looked around wearily.

As they landed on Sasuke, her bloodshot emerald's widened and she back up to the headboard, shouting something like, "Get away from me!" but it was muffled by early morning grogginess.

"Sakura?" Sasuke questioned, his eyebrows scrunched together.

"J-just stay away!" she yelled, holding her hands up in some sort of protection. He took a step forward.

"Sakura, I'm not going to hurt you." He tried to sooth, but she just tripped off the bed and knocked the bedside table over, still keeping her hands up.

"That's what you said last time, Sai! I-I can't…" She trailed off as she fully woke up and saw his face, "oh. It's just you." She sighed and she pushed her hair back and swallowed her tears of anxiety.

Sasuke was quite honestly shocked. His mouth hung open slightly as his eyes just blankly stared at her, "just me? You've been screaming at me for five minutes and you realize that it's 'just me' now?" Sasuke's eyebrow twitched.

"Yeah. Sorry, I have bad dreams and sometimes it takes me awhile to wake up." She explained, edging towards the bed. She glanced at the clock, surprised to find it was only about three in the morning.

"So who's Sai?" Sasuke inquired after he thought she'd recovered. She blinked at him once.

"My cat." She said after missing several beats. Sasuke raised a brow.

"And you're _that_ scared of your cat?" he asked incredulously.

Sakura shrugged, "he's a big cat…."

Sasuke's brow twitched further as he closed his eyes and folded his arms, "I understand if you don't want to tell me your secrets. But, for your sake, stop lying. You suck at it."

Sasuke wasn't going to push for answers he didn't need from this stranger. It seemed like a tender subject, and so he concluded he would leave the wound alone.

She gave him her best glare, but appreciated the subject drop. An awkward silence filled the room as Sakura sat down slowly on the bed. She fixed her mussed hair and picked at her nails.

"Well…" She trailed off, uncomfortable under the boy's stare, "I'm not going back to sleep."

"Me neither," He stated, and after she shot him a curious look, he further explained, "I slept all of yesterday and some of this morning, so I'm not tired."

Sakura nodded silently, then stood up and walked to a door that was across the room from the bed she was previously sleeping in. She slid it open and stepped outside into the early morning. She could see the sun rays breaking the horizon, even this early. Throwing her legs over the rails that protected the inhabitants of the hotel from falling to their doom, she blinked. All she could see for miles was road and trees, not another large building like this in sight.

She heard the footsteps of her newfound companion approach from behind. He leaned against the railing beside her.

The silence was not awkward this time. It was peaceful with the warm air and cool wind blowing their hair gently, the moonlight illuminating them as pale, beautiful creatures.

"How old are you?" Sakura suddenly inquired, an urge to get to know the boy bursting out of her.

"I'm turning nineteen July 23rd." A smirk made it's way to his face as he faced her, "What about you?"

"Oh I turned nineteen March 28th." She said nonchalantly, waving a carefree hand. He narrowed his eyes. Even if it wasn't her fault, he still felt one-upped, being the competitive person he was.

"They say Leo's are natural born leaders." Sasuke said, his nose in the air and his arms crossed.

Sakura rolled her eyes, "Well, us Aries' are very strong willed and therefore are able to take the lead of anything." She countered, a small smirk gracing her features.

"Well…whatever." Sasuke frowned. Sakura laughed heartily at his childish antics, to which he rolled his eyes and proceeded to pout.

Eventually her laughter stilled, and she turned to him, still very curious about this new stranger. She was half on the balcony, half hanging in midair. "What's you favorite color? Mine's red." She grinned.

He was half tempted to say pink, just to make her blush. But he had promised himself he would never become one of those playboy's ever again, not after high school. So he told her the truth, "Sapphire."

"Oh well if you're going specific colors, then I like scarlet." Sakura nodded to her own statement, leaning back slightly while holding the bars securely.

"Ah. Have any siblings?" Sasuke questioned, finally giving in to his more curious side.

Sakura giggled, "I wish. I'm an only child."

Sasuke contemplated telling her of his brother. The thought was swiped from his mind instantly as his mouth let out a, "hn. Same." Well, with how much his brother meant to him, he wasn't really lying.

"Lonely, isn't it?" Sakura muttered, staring at her bare toes. Her lashes fanned her cheeks as they closed.

"Yeah." Sasuke replied, nearly as quiet. Sakura opened her eyes and sent him a look that had his stomach turning. He unknowingly took a step to the side, away from her.

"Anyway," she continued her questioning, "did you purposely shape you hair into a chicken's rear?" She lifted a hand to cover her mouth as she giggled.

He was shocked at first, his mouth hanging open. Then he made a lunge for her while muttering, "why you!"

She laughed harder and tried to evade his attack, backing up on the bar until she was pressed in the corner, pushing him back while he fought against her restraining hands.

He finally gained control of the situation, restraining her hands. He entered her personal bubble, and she seethed dangerously.

He flipped a piece of her pink hair into her face with his free hand, and whispered, "no, I didn't shape it on purpose. I had a hairdresser with a grudge on my family."

Though he was just answering her question, in a very space invading way might she add, it still sent shivers she was unsure of down her spine.

Sasuke backed off, scolding himself mentally. Old habits die hard.

Thankfully though, Sakura didn't act awkward as she pushed herself up. She stomped up to him, punched his arm as hard as she could, and marched back into the room, closing the door behind her.

He watched her go, ignoring the tensing pain in his arm, "Tch. Annoying."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hello! Well I'd like to thank everyone who favorited/alerted this and in some cases my other stories, and I'd like to give a speacial thanks to the reviewers as well. Unable to explain my gratitude. **

**I know this chapter is short, but the scene will continue on in the next chapter, I just felt like I needed to post what I had. ^^**

**Read and Review please! I love you! **


	3. Paradise

**Forever It Shall Remain Untitled **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

* * *

><p>The sun breaking over the horizon startled him out of his thoughts and he looked up. The sunrise was alive with bright colors and his vision momentarily faded black.<p>

He stared out at the large forest, the birds singing happily, the wind blowing gently through his hair. He never really liked the forest all to much, more of a city person himself, but he couldn't deny the obvious tranquility of the whole place. He took a deep breath in, smelling the earthy scents, and let it out in a whoosh.

The door slid open, "Hey, uh- oh right, Sasuke we're leaving in a half hour, so straighten up anything you might have been messing with." Her voice was light, distracted. He nodded and let out a hum of agreement while taking one more look at the beautiful forest.

He turned and walked past her into the room.

There wasn't much for him to do except grab his phone and put it back in his pocket and throw the sheet down the laundry shoot in the small bathroom. He held his jacket yet again.

Sakura had changed into mid-thigh jean shorts and a dark blue tank top, her hair now cascading down her back in gentle waves from being tied up so long.

He would admit she was attractive, although not as stunning as some of the females he had come in close contact with, but her modest beauty was something he found charming.

She shot him a small smile and said, "I'll be stopping in a small town, about an hour from here. They have a clothing store, so you can get a couple outfits and my dad has a bunch of clothes in the cabin." She made hand gestures while she talked, as if it would help him understand more.

He wondered what it would be like if she got mad. Would she make angry gestures while screaming her pink head off? He nearly smirked at the image.

"And I think there's a random small coffee shop a little ways away. We could stop for a quick breakfast." She grinned at him. It was almost painfully obvious how happy she was to have company with her. To have someone to talk to. She thought he was a little dense though, so he might not have noticed yet.

The hallway in the hotel was quiet, their light footsteps shuffled on the not-so-soft carpet, and their breaths were even and deep.

The employee at the front desk smiled cheerfully at the pair, obviously straining his face muscles, "Did you have a good stay? That's nice! How about the curtains, did you like those? Oh, neither do I! Those ratty old things! I hope next time you come back we'll have the most amazing curtains ever! You'll always want to stay here when we have amazing curtains!" He chatted, supposedly to the pair, but he didn't give them time to answer, so of course they just nodded, handed of the key and walked away.

"Have a nice day! Come back soon! I love you!" The boy shouted, reaching after them with his arm outstretched. Sasuke looked over his shoulder and threw him his best, "What exactly is wrong with you?" face that he often shot Naruto.

Once they were outside, Sakura was biting her lip and trying not to laugh. He noticed once again the small lip ring. He didn't know why, but he didn't really like it on her. She didn't look like the type to wear them.

"I think I should avoid this particular hotel for a while." Sakura giggled once they were seated in her car and getting ready to drive off.

"Oh, but no, he said he loved you! You have to come back or he might hunt you down to give you a sample of those amazing curtains." Sasuke mocked, almost chuckling at the grimace on her face.

"Shut it." She laughed, despite her serious tone.

The road seemed to go on forever until they reached the coffee shop and Sakura's stomach was rumbling loudly. Sasuke was giving her disturbed looks out of the corner of his eye as her stomach growled angrily, seemingly saying, "food now."

As they were stumbling out of the car, their legs asleep, Sasuke's phone started blaring. He rolled his eyes and shoved his hand in his pocket. He glared at the caller ID.

"What?" He practically growled.

"Sasuke Uchiha where are you?" His father's rough voice asked back, just as angry.

"Does it matter? I'm where I want to be, far away from you, okay? Hanging up-" He almost slammed the phone shut when his father's voice interrupted him.

"Hang up the phone and you lose everything." His father said blankly, and Sasuke could imagine the dead serious expression on his face.

"You didn't know? I already did. I have absolutely _nothing _to lose, Fugaku! I'm not coming home, _screw you_." And just like that, he slapped the phone shut and turned around. He had unknowingly been stomping in the dirt around the coffee shop while Sakura leaned against the car and watched his hissy fit.

"Angry boss or lame dad?" Sakura inquired, her face serious as she stared at him intelligently, as if she could see inside of him with those piercing green eyes of hers.

"A little of both, actually." His tone was petulant as he muttered, "I thought you were hungry?"

Sakura half grinned and straightened up, "I am," She said and skipped to the shop.

Inside smelled deliciously of black coffee and sweet pastries. He ordered a straight black coffee and a blueberry bagel. Sakura had a tower of sweets and a large cup of hot chocolate, her grin nearly comparable to that of a Cheshire cat. He assumed she had an unhealthy obsession with sweets.

After they had paid and sat down, Sakura immediately attacked the plate. Anything chocolate was gone in the first three minutes. Sasuke had to look away, lest he get sick. He didn't really enjoy sweets.

Sakura offered him a jelly dripping donut, "you need to eat something." She had stated in a motherly voice, but he denied.

"I'm not a big eater, and I don't like sweets." He refused, sipping his coffee haughtily.

"Tch. Whatever. More for me." Sakura muttered and continued stuffing her mouth. He grimaced.

"Ever heard of table manners?" He scoffed, rolling his eyes. Her eyes flashed up to his in a second.

"I'm hungry." She growled and ripped a bit of the donut for emphasis before swallowing it whole. Sasuke's eyes diverted themselves. She wasn't a fun person to get angry, he admitted.

"Whatever." He sipped his coffee again.

A half hour later and they were back on the road, bickering over radio stations and fighting for arm space on the divider in the car.

"You keep both hands on the wheel!" He shouted, really sick of her constant dominance.

"I know how to drive, okay?" She exclaimed, her arm still having the battle of a lifetime with his. The cars radio was blasting random country music, and the car was swerving. If they hadn't been on an abandoned road, they'd have died by now.

"Well it doesn't look like it! Look, you're in the wrong lane!" He pushed her arm and gained the upper hand before she slammed her elbow into his forearm and pushed it back.

"I wouldn't be if you just let me have _my_ space in _my car _and stop freaking _pushing_ me!" She yelled, finally relenting and switching arms.

Sasuke placed his bruised arm gingerly on the arm rest and sighed, pleased with himself in his victory.

Sakura glared at him through the corner of her eye, sulking. She didn't like losing. And she certainly didn't like that smirk. Jerk.

They drove in silence, brooding for Sakura and content for Sasuke. Sakura began to wonder how far he would go. She didn't want to seem intrusive, shooting more questions at him, but she was bored and he seemed interesting.

"Are you a dog person or a cat person?" Sakura suddenly asked him, eyes straight but she had a little smile on her face. Sasuke decided he thought her smile was better than her pouting, though it was kind of cute.

"I'm more of a dog person, but I don't really mind cats." He answered honestly. He'd had a dog when he was a kid, but his brother had taken it with him when he left. One of the many, many reasons Sasuke hated him.

"Oh. I prefer dogs, cats get their fur everywhere," Sakura said, "What do you think the meaning of life is?"

Sasuke thought for a moment about that, "I don't really know. I've thought about it tons of times but I've never really figured it out."

Sakura nodded in understanding. It was a difficult subject to figure out, as no one has before, though there were theories.

"Do frogs have ears?" Sasuke suddenly asked, and Sakura gave him a weird look, "what? I've always wondered, they have holes, but do those count as ears?"

"Yes, yes they do. Frogs have ears, and their ears connect to their lungs. When they hear a noise, both the ear and the lung vibrate." Sakura stated matter-of-factly. Sasuke gave her an incredulous look.

"What, did you expect me to be a blubbering idiot with no education? Just because I have pink hair doesn't mean I'm an insufferable fool." Sakura sniffed, turning her head to the side stubbornly while somehow managing to drive straight.

"Well excuse me if I took you for a lovey-dovey hopeless romantic. Looks like I'm the only one." Sasuke sighed with mock sadness.

"Please. I can tell with just a look at you that you're obviously a brick wall. Have you ever really fell in love?" Sakura gave him a pointed look, to which he smirked.

"Not once." He said, his voice sounding utterly proud.

"And now we're in the same category." Sakura laughed lightly, making a sharp turn on the wheel and pulling into an almost abandoned looking strip mall parking lot. "We've got to get you five outfits, anything in particular you wanted? Muscle shirts? Speedo?" She raised her brow a bit higher every time she shot a question at him.

He narrowed his eyes at her, "do you take me for a middle aged man with hopes of being an attractive young male again?"

"Sometimes," Sakura hesitated playfully, "I think you really are a middle-aged man." And with that jab, she raced into the non-descript clothing store and immediately walked to the male section.

Sasuke walked in, more like stomped, and gave her the best glare he could and it looked like he succeeded. She stared at him with wide but still teasing eyes as she slowly held up a shirt that read, "I FAILED ANGER MANAGEMENT CLASS!"

Sakura thought that Sasuke was going to puff up like an angry cat and hiss at her or something. He narrowed his eyes and stomped over, grabbing five pairs of jeans and five plain black t-shirts and stomping to the cash register, whipping out a credit card and swiping it quickly. He grabbed his bag and exited the store without looking back at the flabbergasted girl.

She stormed out after him, eye brow twitching furiously, "You have a f*cking credit card!" She exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air and jumping.

"Yes." He responded, tapping his foot impatiently, waiting for her to unlock the car, "but that's not important."

She threw her arms in the air once again, "Not important!" She laughed somewhat hysterically, "I've just been wasting my money on you for a day! I could have saved that money you know!" She narrowed her eyes.

"Actually, you've spent about two dollars on me. Seeing as I've only had a coffee in your presence, and the fact that you bought a single room, just as you would have if I wasn't here." Sasuke talked calmly, like he'd practiced with his mother whenever she blew up on him.

Sakura sputtered angrily, but admitted her defeat and unlocked the car.

Not a minute later Sakura was dancing wildly while still managing to drive correctly. Sasuke had made the fatal mistake of switching the radio on to the local Alternative station, and Sakura had gasped and started dancing to the song while singing along almost exactly. Her voice wasn't _completely _terrible, Sasuke grimaced.

His hand slowly reached out to turn the radio off, but Sakura shot her hand out and dragged her claw-like nails across his hand. He pulled it back and glared at her angrily. Annoying, crazy She-devil.

The drive, contrary to their other drives, was loud and very funny. Well, to Sasuke, because honestly he couldn't keep the uncharacteristic chuckle from bubbling up every time she attempted a crazy dance move, swerving the traffic like she was a fish in the sea. It didn't help that the music wasn't really fitting for her hyper dancing. He imagined she would get tired after a few minutes of it, but she'd been going for well over two hours and Sasuke was highly amused.

The road had shrunken to two lanes, but their was almost no traffic. The trees surrounding the road seemed to go on forever and Sasuke was amazed. His parents were never really country folk, and had never taken him camping as a child. He had gone camping, if you could call it that, in his grandparents backyard once. They had a small patch of trees, that he had considered a forest back then.

Sakura had rolled the windows down, the late afternoon sun warming them and Sakura continued to dance. Sasuke drew in a large breath and sighed happily, but quietly. The air smelled so pure, untainted by the smog and filth of the city. Sasuke always thought he was a city person, but if this was how the forest was, he really couldn't complain.

"Lovely, isn't it?" Sakura asked, and Sasuke looked over at her. She had turned the radio down, and wasn't dancing anymore, though her fingers were still drumming the steering wheel.

"Sure." Sasuke answered and ran a hand threw his hair, fighting a yawn, "how much longer?"

"Well, can you count to three?" Sakura asked, giving him a light smirk while turning the wheel widely, turning into a narrow pathway. Tree branches poked and prodded the car as it pushed through. Sasuke couldn't see anything besides trees, and Sakura kept turning corners that he didn't know were there. After another five minutes of turning through the maze of trees, they broke out into a large front yard. A little ways ahead, he saw a small wooden cabin, the sun setting directly behind it. He saw a lake behind the cabin, sparkling in the sunlight.

Sakura stopped the car in front of the house, her eyes lighting up like a child's and she unbuckled herself and opened her door. She turned back to him and winked, "Welcome to paradise."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well It's been (almost?) a week, so here it is! **

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed/favorited/alerted! It means a lot to me. I have a speacial dance I do everytime I get notifications. xD It's lovely.**

**Read and Review and _Enjoy! _**


	4. Not So Romantic Puppy Surprise!

**Forever It Shall Remain Untitled.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto! **

* * *

><p>To say Sasuke was astonished was an understatement. He sat in the passenger seat for a good five minutes, just staring at the beautiful scene in front of him. He hadn't seen anything like it. Nothing compared. Not tomatoes, not fireworks, and not even snow. Not anything was as beautiful as the wilderness.<p>

Sakura knocked on his door twice, leaning through the window, her eyes following his stare to the forest, where his focus was located. He turned his face toward her, noticing the very close proximity. Sakura turned back to him and didn't seem to notice as she grinned, "C'mon! Help me get all these bags into the cottage and then you can stare at the trees all you want." Sakura laughed and pulled his door open, walking back towards the open trunk. She pulled a couple suitcases up the gravel path that led to the cottage.

Apparently, she'd brought quite a few bags. She explained that she was staying up here all summer and probably the first month of Fall as well. She'd obviously saved up her vacation days over the years.

After he'd helped her lug them all into the main bedroom, he felt the urge to head back outside and watch the sunset and the trees and the- well, anything he could see, really.

Sakura gave him a knowing little grin and said, "Want to go for a little hike before it gets dark?" Sasuke of course agreed immediately, more than eager to explore.

Sakura laughed and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge that she had just plugged in.

Once they were outside, Sakura walked along the house until she came to a path just barely large enough for two people, trees branches and leaves poking them relentlessly.

"Now be careful in the forest, Mr. Sasuke, for there are hungry mountain men who will stoop so low as to eat a grumpy young man, understand?" Sakura joked easily, to which Sasuke glared.

"Well, if any mountain men are so hungry as to eat me, I'll be sure to give them directions to your location. I'm sure they won't be satisfied with just me." He smirked at his own joke while Sakura chuckled. So she had a comeback.

"My cottage is mountain man proof, rest assured. If it wasn't, I wouldn't be here now would I?" Sakura raised her brow.

Sasuke scoffed and rolled his dark grey eyes. Sakura seemed to know where she was going, pushing her way easily through the overgrown path. Suddenly, she disappeared from his sight and he glanced around frantically for anything pink and annoying.

"Sakura?" He called out, trying to make his voice sound not so panicky, "Sakura?" He called louder.

A bush rustled to his immediate left and he jumped, backing into a tree on the right. He looked around, his eyes darting around for the girl who could possibly be dead, "Sakura!" he yelled, the fear now evident in his voice. He didn't plan on getting mauled by a mountain man any time soon.

The same bush rustled again and this time Sasuke stared at it wide eyed, before bending down and grabbing a small stick to defend himself with.

He aimed it at the bush and began his threats, "Listen here, I am Sasuke Uchiha and I will not be eaten by you! I am not afraid! You- you come out of that bush and- OH MY-!" Sasuke shouted as a figure jumped out of the bush at him and tackled him to the forest floor. He shouted and tried to smack whatever had tackled him, but he found his hands restrained by his sides.

"Sakura!" He shouted, struggling, "get off me! SAKURA!" He yelled as loud as he could. He immediately heard a tinkling laughter right above him, and for the first time his mind registered this wasn't a hungry mountain man attacking him, but the very girl he was shouting for.

He stared up at her laughing face and she held him down with a fierce, unyielding grip.

She watched through her bright green eyes as his face changed from panicked, to shock, to just plain fury.

He scowled at her for a full minute, "Get off." He snarled viciously, and she was obviously unaffected as she continued to laugh mercilessly at his previous fear.

"You should have seen your face!" She laughed hysterically, "And oh! When your voice cracked-!" She shook with laughter and eventually released his wrist so she could bang her fist on the forest floor.

He seethed at her overflowing mirth and brushed himself off.

About an hour later saw Sasuke and Sakura sitting beside a fire in the back yard, deep in conversation about their lives, past and present. Sakura was holding a marshmallow on a stick over the fire, watching as it toasted merrily.

"My dad used to work at the local police station in Konoha. He took his job very seriously, too seriously if you ask me. But I suppose all that caution helped him none, he died a couple days ago." She muttered, turning the stick slowly.

"Really? I work for the police station. I- oh. _Oh. _You said your name was Haruno?" He asked, suddenly feeling very sick. She nodded slowly, questioningly.

Sasuke put his hand over his face and let out a heavy breath. He didn't know what to say, 'hey, yeah I just led your dad to his death!' Absolutely not. He changed the subject.

"What about your mom?" He looked into the fire.

She shrugged absently, "She's dealing I guess. She suggested I take this vacation." An owl hooted from somewhere nearby and Sasuke jumped, causing her to giggle at him.

"Shut up," he muttered. She pulled her marshmallow from the fire and popped it in her mouth. And spit it out.

"HOT!" she exclaimed, fanning her mouth like that would do something. Sasuke rolled his dark grey eyes, fire dancing along with the humor.

"Because it wasn't just roasting over an open fire." He said sarcastically. She glared at him while pausing in her frantic waves. She said something, but it wasn't coherent as she was talking with her tongue lolling out of her mouth, "You look like a panting dog. Put your tongue back in your mouth."

She did so and snapped her mouth shut, still glaring at him. Thus began the expression war. She glared, he scowled. She stuck her tongue out, he raised an eyebrow. She put an innocent finger to her lip and widened her eyes, he leaned on one arm and twirled an invisible lock of hair.

Eventually they ended up with gorilla faces, staring each other down until they both started laughing. Suddenly, a twig snapped in the forest behind Sasuke and made them both jump and look around frantically.

"What was that?" Sasuke demanded of Sakura, who looked just as scared.

"How should I know!" She exclaimed, standing up and dousing the fire with water. Sasuke stood up and collected their items quickly, looking around to make sure nothing was attacking him.

Once he had everything, he rushed to dump it in the house. Sakura was still watering the fire. Once he stepped in the house he heard her shriek. He dropped everything and ran back out, his bravery kicking in. He mentally prepared himself to kick some cannibalistic mountain man ass.

But as he reached Sakura, he felt the sudden urge to face palm. Sakura was on the ground…being licked by a group of puppies.

There were four, all looking significantly different, but somehow alike.

"Sakura, get away from those things! They could have rabies!" He shouted, picking up a stick as one of them looked over at him innocently.

"They're so cute, Sasuke!" She giggled, scratching one behind the ear. He slowly began to approach, stick in hand, ready to strike whichever one chose to pick a fight with him.

He was not prepared, however, for a sudden disturbance holding him back by his ankle. He looked back and scowled. Apparently, there was a fifth one.

"How many puppies live in this freaking forest!" He shouted to the heavens. As if to answer, another one came running out from behind a tree.

"Can we keep 'em, Sasuke?" Sakura giggled. Sasuke glared hard at her, trying to tug his leg away from the little scruffy black puppy that had an amazingly firm grip on his shoe.

"No." He stated, finally just reaching down and grabbing the little black ball of fur.

"But- but! You have no authority! It's my cabin and I say we keep them!" She deemed, and Sasuke glared at her yet again.

He had no time to retort though, as the puppy in his grip started whining and licking his hand, "see Sasuke? He likes you!"

"He just tastes the marshmallow on my hand," Sasuke said, frowning at the puppies affection.

"They must be hungry!" She exclaimed, "I wonder how long they've been out there! And where is their mother?" She wonder to herself as she stood up and walked towards the back door, all of the puppies following her in a line, like ducklings, except for the obsessive licker in his grasp.

He glanced at the forest one last time and sighed heavily, following Sakura into the house. In the kitchen there were various bowls placed around and dog food in each of them. Some fought over the bowls but Sakura set them straight.

"Dare I ask why you have dog food?" Sasuke inquired while placing the black fuzzy by the only unoccupied bowl.

"I used to have a dog, when I was little. Plus, there used to be a wild dog that lived in the forest and we would feed it whenever it came around. Haven't seen it in years. But I'm glad we saved the food." Sakura smiled at the tiny little things. They couldn't be older than three weeks, Sasuke decided. They looked like tiny wolves.

There were two russet ones, that looked identical, expect one of them had a giant white spot on it's back while the other was pure brown. One was grey with a black patch on over it's eyes, like a raccoon, but it's golden eyes stuck out. Two were black and white like a traditional husky dog. And then there was the pure black one, with the blue eyes like ice. It seemed to be the little leader of the group.

"What're we going to name them?" Sakura asked excitedly. Sasuke rolled his eyes."We can't name them, then we get attached." He stated.

Sakura blanched, "I told you I'm keeping them, so we must name them!"

"Fine, how about demon one through demon six?" He asked seriously. Sakura glared at him. The two russet puppies finished first and walked to a corner where they proceeded to fall over each other and close their eyes. "I think we should name those two Alue and Ari. The smaller one with the white patch is a girl, that's Alue. The chubby one is a boy, Ari." She explained. Sasuke raised a brow at the girl, "Oh and the boy over there, the one that looks like a raccoon, we should name him Meeko, like the raccoon from Pocahontas."

Sasuke suddenly spoke up, "Can I still name the black one demon?" Sakura stared at him for a moment before breaking out in laughter.

"No, it's a girl, try something a bit more feminine." Sakura laughed. Sasuke wondered how exactly she was able to tell the difference. He was sufficiently surprised about the little demon being a girl.

"Nadia." He said, after much thought. Surprisingly, the black puppy lifted it's head from her bowl and looked him straight in the eye. She then turned back to her food. Sakura was looking giddy.

"It's perfect. And the last two, both boys. Beau and Wolf. The one with the black tail and blue eyes is Beau, Wolf is the one with the eye patch and brown eyes."

Sasuke nodded acceptingly. After a while, all the puppies were finished and Sakura cleaned up the bowls.

Sakura was smiling evilly at Sasuke as he warily watched the puppies, who were staring between him and Sakura. He glanced at her, "what?"

"You're sleeping in the only spare room. And the puppies are sleeping there also." She laughed, and he could swear he saw an evil little spark in her eye.

"No." He refused, glaring down at the demons in disguise, who stared innocently back at him.

"You have no choice, they can't sleep anywhere else until I get the junk cleared out of my fathers room for you to sleep in." She sighed, but he could tell she was amused.

Sasuke sighed heavily, "fine. But they aren't sleeping on the bed."

"Whatever you say." She chuckled to herself.

Three hours later, Sasuke laid in the spare bed that smelt of smoke and wood, staring at the digital clock on the bedside table that read '1:03 AM' in bright red letters. Many snores surrounded him. Puppies lay around him, kicking him at thirty second intervals. He'd given in after they rushed him in a wall formation and let them curl up on the bed. The russet twins lay on either side of his chest, tacking turns sneezing on him in their sleep, while the two husky-looking twins chewed on his ankles in their sleep. The raccoon pup lay as far away from the rest as he could, seemingly the anti-social one of the group. He recognized it as the puppy that had run from the woods last. And the black one, oh the black one, Nadia. She lay atop his head, one of her rough paws resting over his left eye, while her tail continuously smacked his face, and her snores roared in his ear.

He felt his eye twitching so quickly he thought it might pop out.

Sakura walked into that exact position hours later, but not just Sasuke's eye was twitching now. No, his whole face looked like it was having a massive twitch repeatedly. Sakura couldn't hold back her laughter, which woke all of the pups, who then wasted no time in scrambling off of him, making sure they all got a good scratch on him, especially Nadia.

Sakura was rolling all over the ground, her laughs not even audible anymore. Sasuke threw himself off the bed, "I'll have you know that I did not get a _wink _of sleep thanks to those-those _demons_!" Sasuke shouted at Sakura wildly. She only laughed harder, banging her fists on the ground. Sasuke stalked from the room, grumbling all the way, only to find the puppies lined up in the kitchen staring at the empty bowls on the counter. He scowled, "no, I'm not feeding you. Go bother Sakura, you little cretins."

They all whined at him and wagged their tales, probably trying to encourage him in a friendly manner to pour them food. But he refused.

He poured himself a glass of orange juice and sipped it slowly while having a stare-down with the six deadly animals.

Sakura entered the room and immediately went to the pantry to fetch the dog food. She poured each puppy an equal amount in the mismatched bowls.

"We need to drive to the town down the road, they have a pet store. We can buy leashes and more food and such." Sakura said as she gave Alue and Ali their bowls last.

"Do we have to take them?" He jerked his head the eating creatures in contempt.

"Yes, we can't leave them here alone, imagine the damage! Unless you wanted to stay back and watch them while I go?" Sakura raised an amused brow, knowing he would decline immediately.

"That's a cruel joke." He said harshly.

"I know." She giggled.

* * *

><p><strong>Er- hey! It's been a little while, and I feel really guilty, but it's not like you missed it to much, right? It is terrible after all. Anyways, this chapter is just for humor, but the puppies, strange as it may seem, are a really important part of the story! So please bear with me, no this won't be an animal fic, but the puppies will be the main sence of humor for the next few chapters. (: <strong>

**Anyways, I'd like to personally thank everyone who reviewed/favorited/followed last chapter (and the chapters before)! It means so much to me, each of you make me smile. And for those who just read, I love you as well. **

**Please read and review and most importantly, enjoy! **


End file.
